1 John 2:20-23
20 But you have an anointing from the Holy One, and all of you know the truth. 21 I do not write to you because you do not know the truth, but because you do know it and because no lie comes from the truth. 22 Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist—denying the Father and the Son. 23 No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also.
At the heart of our faith is not a doctrine or a rule, but a person, Jesus. At the heart of our faith is the understanding that Jesus is not just one of us, but also Divine, God’s Son, sent to bring us into relationship with his Father. We’ve always had differences of opinion on the details of our belief and practice, and always will, and as long as we treat each other generously and act humbly, this is fine, because our faith is not defined by detailed theology or ecclesiology or ethics, but our relationship with him. This essential heart of our faith, however, is critical. We may differ on other points, but if we step away from him then we step away from the relationship with the Father he came to bring us into.
15 …Jesus asked, “Who do you say I am?”
16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God.” (Matthew 16:15-16)
How about you, what do you say?
Leave a Reply